Ross Kashtan: BULA BELONGS TO FIJI:

We, the people of Fiji and Fijians around the world truly believe that what Ross Kashtan and his team as portrayed on the site ‘Bula Nation’ has done is inappropriate and disrespectful for the following reasons:
1. Ross Kashtan has appropriated the word ‘bula’ with which he has no personal connection for purely commercial purposes. He is thereby engaging in cultural appropriation and is causing moral prejudice to the people of Fiji by taking the word and declaring it his own by trademarking it.
2.  The team and story on the ‘Bula Nation’ website have no relationship with Fiji (the kava is not even sourced from Fiji according to the website and therefore brings absolutely no benefit to Fijians)
3.  The use of Bula by ‘Bula Nation’ misrepresent the real meaning and essence of Bula
4.   The portrayal of the Pacific on the ‘Our Story’ component of the website is offensive and sexist
5.   Kava and other medicinal plants have deep cultural meaning and value to Fijians and it is disrespectful to use the word ‘Bula’ in this commercial setting We would urge Ross Kashtan to change the name of his commercial enterprise and desist from using the word Bula and associating himself with it.